Former Secretary of State Colin Powell announced Tuesday that he will vote for Hillary Clinton, becoming the latest member of the George W. Bush administration to back the Democratic presidential nominee.
Speaking at the Long Island Association Fall Luncheon, Powell condemned GOP nominee Donald Trump while praising Clinton for her experience and stamina, according to reporters at the event.
Long Island news outlet Newsday reported that Powell had harsh words for Trump.
“He has insulted America in one way almost every day,” Powell said, according to Newsday. “He has insulted Latino Americans. He has insulted African-Americans. He has insulted women. He has insulted his own party. He has insulted our allies around the world one by one by one. He has insulted veterans.”
Paul Pachter, the CEO of Long Island Cares, Inc., attended the luncheon and also tweeted that Powell announced his support for Clinton.
{mosads}Powell’s endorsement follows recent friction with Clinton.
The retired four-star general, a registered Republican, slammed reports that Clinton told the FBI he was the inspiration for the private email setup she used while leading the State Department.
“Her people have been trying to pin it on me,” Powell told People magazine in August.
“The truth is she was using [her email setup] for a year before I sent her a memo telling her what I did.”
Clinton had told the FBI that Powell advised her to use a personal email account. Both Powell and Clinton used private email accounts during their times at the State Department, earning them stern reprimands from an inspector general earlier this year.
Leaked Powell emails released earlier this year also showed he was not excited about a Trump-Clinton matchup.
He called Trump a “national disgrace” and described Clinton as “greedy.”
“I would rather not have to vote for her, although she is a friend I respect,” Powell wrote in a 2014 email exchange with New York financier Jeffrey Leeds.
“A 70-year person with a long track record, unbridled ambition, greedy, not transformational, with a husband still d—ing bimbos at home (according to the NYP).”
Powell endorsed President Obama in both 2008 and 2012.
Updated at 5:01 p.m.